Opinion: Let’s work together to move Atlanta forward

That’s why we’re bringing again Atlanta Ahead.

The timing appears proper, because it did in 2009.

As a part of Atlanta Ahead, we wish to be a number one voice for security, integrity and customary sense.

We wish to foster a dialogue and provide options in order that we are able to maintain this group targeted on the necessary points.

In brief, we wish to assist make this area and state a greater place by which to reside – for this technology and the subsequent.

Take into consideration the place we’ve been – and the place we are actually.

Whereas our regional and state financial system stay comparatively robust total, the COVID-19 pandemic hit onerous, battering our strained well being care equipment and sickening and killing tens of 1000’s of Georgians.

Throughout our area and much past, a poisonous mix of politics has sapped and soured our spirits and weakened communal ties that used to hyperlink us throughout the pink, blue and purple traces of demarcation.

And after years of relative security on our streets, a spate of violent crime has erupted in recent times, heightening concern and unease amongst us – and never with out good purpose. It’s obvious that actual solutions should go nicely past the standard platitudes and would-be fast fixes.

The cumulative downbeat impact of those phenomena is actual. A area and other people always at odds gained’t get a lot achieved.

It’s time to attempt to come collectively across the massive points – simply as we did once we first launched Atlanta Ahead 13 years in the past.

Whereas it’s tempting, now just isn’t the time to fixate on wanting again to seemingly higher days. That’s an alluring, misleading – and dropping – proposition.

As a substitute, it’s time for the place we name house to rise once more. That’s the spirit which, paired with innovation and onerous effort – launched us onto the world’s A-list.

Again in 2009, once we first launched Atlanta Ahead, we laid out 5 key areas of focus. They have been:

Even on this age of arguing about most something, we must always all agree that these matters are nonetheless worthy of our curiosity and collective power.

However instances have modified, and there are new points going through us, too:

And that’s why we’re re-launching Atlanta Ahead.

We plan on providing paths towards options, relying closely on classes that others across the nation and world are studying as they deal with the identical issues.

We’ll share concepts from leaders and others within the enterprise, authorities, nonprofit and group sectors. Their views are necessary.

And we’ll depend on our personal information reporting, and opinion “voice” the place wanted, to assist make our communities stronger.

We don’t plan on stopping there.

We additionally need you, our readers, to share your ideas and concepts.

The place do we have to go from right here to maintain pushing this place ahead towards better success?

We hope you consider us as a civic sq. of kinds and a market of various concepts.

How efficient we may be in doing all of this is dependent upon you.

Which is why we wish to hear from you.

On this divisively partisan age, such a solutions-focused dialogue will probably be way more productive.

In his e book, “Triumph of the Metropolis,” Edward Glaeser wrote that, “we should free ourselves from our tendency to see cities as their buildings and do not forget that the actual metropolis is made from flesh, not concrete.”

We’d add the ability of concepts and innovation to that.

We hope the re-launch of Atlanta Ahead helps gas a resurgence of such pondering on our pages and elsewhere round right here.

Glaeser had one other thought that intrigues us nonetheless. He wrote that, “Nice cities usually are not static – they always change and take the world together with them.”

That’s a journey we wish to take together with you.

No place can try this higher than metro Atlanta.

With the re-launch of Atlanta Ahead, let’s get to work.

The Editorial Board.